"Keep Ya Head Up" is a song by American rapper

2Pac Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...

from his second studio album, '' Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z...''(1993). It was released on October 28, 1993 as the album's third single. The song features R&B singer

Dave Hollister David Le Chaine Hollister (born August 17, 1968) is an American R&B singer who found fame during the 1990s as one quarter of the R&B quartet Blackstreet, before going on to have a solo career. Hollister is best known for his 2000 gold-certifie ...

and is dedicated to his godson Elijah, Corin Wray (Daughter of

Salt Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quantitie ...

) from Salt-N-Pepa and

Latasha Harlins Latasha Harlins (January 1, 1976 – March 16, 1991) was an African-American girl who was fatally shot at age 15 by Soon Ja Du ( ko, 두순자) after Latasha knocked Soon Ja Du to the ground, a 51-year-old Korean-American convenience store owner ...

. Tupac emphasizes the abuse black women face in the society.

Production and release

The beat is sampled from Zapp's " Be Alright" and the chorus is taken from

The Five Stairsteps The Five Stairsteps, known as "The First Family of Soul" and later "The Invisible Man's Band", was an American Chicago soul group made up of five of Betty and Clarence Burke Sr.'s six children: Alohe Jean, Clarence Jr., James, Dennis, and Kenn ...

' "

O-o-h Child "O-o-h Child" is a 1970 single, written by Stan Vincent, recorded by Chicago soul family group the Five Stairsteps and released on the Buddah label. The Five Stairsteps had previous peripheral success recording in Chicago with Curtis Mayfiel ...

". It was first released in Shakur's 1993 album ''

Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z. ''Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z...'' is the second studio album by American rapper 2Pac, released on February 16, 1993, by Interscope and Jive Records. N.I.G.G.A. in the title is punctuated to refer to 2Pac's backronym "Never Ignorant in Getting Go ...

'' later appearing after his death in 1998 in his ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

'' compilation. A "sequel" to the song, "

Baby Don't Cry (Keep Ya Head Up II) "Baby Don't Cry (Keep Ya Head Up II)" is a posthumous hip hop single by 2Pac and the Outlawz from the album '' Still I Rise''. It features pop band H.E.A.T., E.D.I. Mean of Outlawz, Young Noble and others. It charted at #72 on the ''Billboard' ...

" was released on 2Pac's posthumous album '' Still I Rise'' in 1999. The song was featured in the Tupac biopic ''

All Eyez on Me ''All Eyez on Me'' is the fourth studio album by American rapper 2Pac and the last to be released during his lifetime. Released on February 13, 1996, by Death Row and Interscope Records, the album features guest appearances from Dr. Dre, Sno ...

''.

Music video

The video opens up with the words "Dedicated to the memory of

, it's still on", in reference to the 1992 L.A. Riots. The video has a basic format with Shakur rapping in the middle of a circle surrounded by a crowd of people and in some scenes he is seen holding a young child. His mother

Afeni Shakur Afeni Shakur Davis (born Alice Faye Williams; January 10, 1947 – May 2, 2016) was an American political activist and member of the Black Panther Party. Shakur was the mother of rapper Tupac Shakur and the executor of his estate. She founded t ...

and close friend

Jada Pinkett Smith Jada Koren Pinkett Smith (; née Pinkett; born September 18, 1971) is an American actress and talk show host. She is co-host of the Facebook Watch talk show '' Red Table Talk'', for which she has received a Daytime Emmy Award. ''Time'' named ...

made cameo appearances in the video.

Critical reception

Alyssa Rosenberg of ''

Brisbane Times Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

'' felt the song "weaved together a critique of negligent fathers, an argument for abortion rights and a sharp analysis of misogyny."

Track listing

CDS – maxi single # "Keep Ya Head Up" (LP version) # "Keep Ya Head Up" (Vibe Tribe remix) # "Keep Ya Head Up" (Madukey remix) # "Rebel of the Underground" # "I Wonder If Heaven Got a Ghetto"

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Credits

*Engineer – Bob Tucker (tracks: A2, B2), Norman "Slam" Whitfield, Jr.* (tracks: A2, B2) *Engineer emix– Eric Flickinger (tracks: B1), Franklin Purrell (tracks: B1) *Mixed By – D. Nettlesbey* (tracks: A2), Norman "Slam" Whitfield, Jr.* (tracks: A2) *Producer – D-Flow Production Squad, The* (tracks: B2), D.J. Daryl* (tracks: A1, B1) *Remix dditional– Norman "Slam" Whitfield, Jr.* (tracks: B2) Remix, *Producer dditional Production– Bryant "Moe Doe" Johnson* (tracks: B1), Battlecat* (tracks: B2), Howard Johnson (2) (tracks: B2), Kris Kellow* (tracks: B2), Lea Reis (tracks: B1), Paul Arnold (tracks: B2), Vibe Tribe (10) (tracks: A2) *Vocals – Black Angel, The (tracks: A1, B1), Money B (2) (tracks: B2), Shockalock (tracks: B2)

References

External links

"Keep Ya Head Up" music video
{{authority control 1992 songs 1993 singles Tupac Shakur songs Interscope Records singles Jive Records singles Songs with feminist themes Protest songs Songs written by Tupac Shakur American contemporary R&B songs Music videos directed by David Dobkin